Quite possibly the best (and first) slasher movie of all time, Black Christmas is a brilliant little chiller that was made in Canada in 1974. The film became known for setting the main ground for the slasher sub-genre, and has gained cult status over the years. The film was remade in 2006 under the same title.
Plot Outline
(from video box cover)
 'Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house, a creature was stirring. The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, but it was hardly St. Nicholas soon to be there. In the college town of Bedford, several unsuspecting young people are about to recieve Season's Greetings - of terror.
Black Christmas is a stark and stylish excercise in suspense that turns everyone's favorite time of the year inside out. Olivia Hussey and Margot Kidder star as two among an ill-fated handful of sorority sisters celebrating the season and semester's end when an obscene phone call interrupts the festivities. The caller rings off with a death threat, which proves to be all too real. Is the killer a brilliant music student who has gotten one of the women pregnant? No one is sure. And no one can stop the deadly calls preceding the attacks.
Predating Halloween and Friday the 13th by several years, Black Christmas effectively laid the groundwork for the murder thrillers that would follow through its clever interplay of tension, shocks, and even humor. Producer/director Bob Clark earned his reputation as a hitmaker for the first to Porky's films, but here works in a vein closer to his highly applauded Sherlock Holmes caper Murder by Decree, exploring the underside of the holiday he so affectionately - and somewhat sardonically - celebrated in the jovial A Christmas Story.
So go ahead and curl up by the fireside with some chestnuts and eggnog, and have yourself a scary little Christmas. It's not all like the ones you used to know.
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Interesting Facts
+ The role of Peter was originally offered to Malcom McDowell, but he turned it down.
+ The role of Mrs. Mac was offered to Bette Davis.
+ Keir Dullea worked only for a week on this film, never meeting Margot Kidder and barely meeting John Saxon, but the film is edited in such a way that he appears to be present throughout.
+ Numerous people were responsible for voicing the frightening phone calls, including director Bob Clark, actor Nick Mancuso, and even a few women.
+ After seeing the ending of the film, studio executives asked director Bob Clark to change the ending. The proposed idea was to have the cops leaving Jess alone with Chris, Claire's boyfriend. She wakes up and he says, "Agnes, don't tell them what we did." Then he kills her. However, Clark refused and insisted that the ending be ambiguous.
+ The film was originally titled Silent Night, Evil Night, and even a few posters were printed with this title on it, and some remain today. The title was later changed to Black Christmas.
+ Ironically, director Bob Clark later went on to take a look at the lighter side of the holiday season, directing the classic, A Christmas Story.
+ Rather than using conventional music to play along for the credits, the filmmakers used a constant telephone ring instead.
+ Actress Lynne Griffin, who played Clare, had to poke a hole in the plastic in front of her mouth (although it is not visible) for the scenes that involved the plastic wrapped around her face, otherwise she would have not been able to breathe.
+ The carol that is sung by the Christmas carollers is called "Oh Come all Ye Faithful".
+ The movie won the Canadian Film Award in 1975 for best performance by a lead actress (Margot Kidder), and won an Etrog for the best sound editing.
+ There was speculation that Bob Clark had intended to work with John Carpenter on "Halloween" and make it a semi-sequel to Black Christmas, but the idea was turned down.
+ The voice featured during the first phone call was edited in later according to Olivia Hussey. She said that the voice on the phone they were actually listening to while filming was director Bob Clark saying things like "I'm gonna get you", rather than the vulgar language that was used in the film's final cut.
+ According to Olivia Hussey, the handprints going across the sweater that she wore in the beginning of the film kept on stretching as she gained more weight, because she and director Bob Clark would often go out to a Chinese restaurant after filming and order Chinese pancakes.
+ Margot Kidder never thought that the film would amount to much after finishing it, and was surprised when it became a cult hit years later.
+ The television version of the film is titled Stranger In The House.
+ Filming began on March 25, 1974, and ended on May 11, 1974.
Release Dates
Canada: October 11, 1974
United States: December 20, 1974
Sweden: December 25, 1974
Norway: April 29, 1975
Full Cast List
Olivia Hussey..... Jessica Bradford
Margot Kidder..... Barbie 'Barb' Coard
Keir Dullea..... Peter Smythe
John Saxon..... Lieutenant Ken Fuller
Andrea Martin..... Phyllis 'Phyl' Carlson
Marian Waldman..... Mrs. Mac
Lynne Griffin..... Clare Harrison
James Edmond..... Mr. Harrison
Art Hindle..... Chris Hayden
Doug McGrath..... Seargant Nash
Michael Rapport..... Patrick
Leslie Carlson..... Graham
Martha Gibson..... Mrs. Quaife
John Rutter..... Detective Wynman
Robert Warner..... Doctor
Syd Brown..... Farmer
Pam Barney..... Jean
Robert Hawkins..... Wes
David Clement..... Cogan
Julian Reed..... Officer Jennings
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